Research Article
Kris Li and Veicheng Yu
Abstract
In our studies, historical data on neighboring colonies of New South Wales and Victoria in 19th century are used to shed new light on an issue which has intrigued economic historians and economists: How is trade policy linked to long-term economic growth? It is found that Victoria’s higher protection restricted productivity growth directly, but stimulated it indirectly through the revenue effects of promoting greater infrastructure and a consequentially-larger population base.